SAINT LEO, Fla. – In the midst of a three-game losing trend, the Saint Leo women’s basketball team (13-11, 6-7 SSC) looks to get back to their winning ways by upsetting a team they have not defeated since the 2000-01 season in the Rollins Tars.

Last Time Out…Saint Leo took it on the chin in their previous contest with Florida Southern. Against the Mocs, the Lions owned the majority of the first half, gradually building a 12-point first half lead. Unfortunately, with a little over five minutes to play in the first a Chelsea Johnson three-pointer sparked a 20-0 charge by the Mocs. The once large SLU lead had evaporated and put the Lions on their heels. The Mocs continued the pressure, ripping-off runs of 14-3 and 7-0 to pull away with a 81-61, 20-point win. The SSC victory pushed Florida Southern to 8-6 in conference and dropped the Lions to one game under .500 at 6-7.

Series Overview…The series has belonged to the Tars since the beginning. SLU has not defeated the Tars since 2000-01 and own a 63-8 series advantage over the Green & Gold. Still, Saint Leo has played Rollins tough as of late. In fact, three of their last six losses have been by 10 points or less, including a 69-64 overtime loss in January of 2008.

Last Meeting…The Lions and Tars last met on January 23rd of this year. In the contest, the Lions fell 64-50 at the Warden Arena in Winter Park, Fla. For Saint Leo, Sierra Williams was the lone Lion in double-figures as she posted 11 points, in addition to her nine rebounds, three assists, and two steals. Gekeela Clemmons dropped in nine points and grabbed six boards, and Brittany Carannante put in seven points. Dominique Daniels and Willonda Windham were uncommonly quiet in the loss, as they were held to six points apiece to go along with 12 combined rebounds. SLU shot 32.7 perecent (16-for-49) from the floor, while hitting on 13-of-18 free throws. For Rollins, two players registered double-figures in points as Brittainy Daiger and Amber Heistan scored 12 and 10 points, respectively. Kristina Mingos was one point shy of a double-double. She snatched a game-high 11 boards on top of blocking two shots. As a team, the Tars shot 37.3 percent (25-for-67) and forced Saint Leo into 24 turnovers. They capped the night by out-rebounding the Lions 44-to-37.

Leaders…For the majority of the season, the Lions have led the SSC in three-point field goal percentage and that is no different this week. They have made 106 three-pointers for 36 percent. The percentage is good enough to rank second in the nation. Rollins, on the other hand, is third in the SSC in total field goal percentage, shooting 40.9 percent from the floor. The game also features two of the best offensive rebounding team (Saint Leo) and one of the best defensive rebounding teams (Rollins). Rollins is first in the conference in steals, while Saint Leo is tied for fourth in the SSC in blocked shots. Individually, the Lions’ Daniels is 10th in the SSC in scoring at 13.3 ppg. SLU posses two of the top-five leading rebounders in the conference in Daniels and Windham; Daniels also ranks 40th in the nation in rebounding average. Rollins has a pair in the top-10 in field goal percentage in Burgess (48.4%) and Daiger (47.8%). Guard Paris Moore ranks seventh in assists (3.3 apg.) and sixth in steals (1.9 spg.) The Tars rank sixth in the NCAA in scoring margin and fifth in defensive field-goal percentage. The team also ranks in the top-100 in 10 other categories. Individually, Heistan ranks 59th in three-point field goal percentage (38.0%). Her teammate, Gianna Mingos, ranks sixth (39.7%) in the SSC in the same category.

Trends…Saint Leo enters this game on the three-game slide. During the recent turn of events, the Lions are having a hard time finding the basket, averaging just 58.7 ppg. while surrendering 80.0 ppg. They are allowing opponents to shoot 48.4 percent (90-of-186) from the field and nearly 42 percent from behind the three-point-line. Saint Leo has also succumbed to a large rebounding deficit, being out-rebounded 127-to-105. The Tars come into the game having won two-straight, including an upset victory of No. 14 Tampa last Saturday.

About Saint Leo…The Lions are pumping in 65 ppg. while opponents are averaging 66.8 ppg. Saint Leo is 21 rebounds shy of 1,000 for the season and have shrunk their turnover major to nearly even with their opponents. The team is shooting 38.7 percent from the floor and 35.5 percent from behind-the-arc. They are shooting 67.4 percent from the charity stripe and have blocked 71 shots as a team. Daniels is a tick under 13.0 ppg. and averaging nearly nine boards per contest. She is second on the team in steals with 24 and boasts the highest free-throw percentage (78.0%). Windham remains steady at 11.7 ppg. and 7.4 rpg. Clemmons is also a double-figure scorer for the Lions averaging 10.7 ppg. Carannante is the all-around performer for the Lions, scoring 8.8 ppg. in addition to 3.5 rpg., and a team-high in steals (54) and blocks (20). Williams has amassed a 7.4 scoring average, while grabbing 3.9 rpg. Off the bench, Brianna Lollis and Lauren Lee are two of the main contributors averaging just around 5.0 ppg.

Coach Olds’ Keys to Success…“We played well for the first 15 minutes against Southern. We need to continue that same intensity, drive, and passion for the full 40 minutes. We need to finish and finish the way we know how.”

Probable Starters…

Player

PPG

RPG

Specialty

Dominique Daniels

12.9

8.8

78.0% FT's (92-of-118)

Willonda Windham

11.7

7.4

46.2 FG%

Gekeela Clemmons

10.7

3.6

37.2 (3-pt fg%)

Brittany Carannante

8.4

3.5

54 Stl's, 20 Blk's

Sierra Williams

7.5

3.9

36 Assists

About Rollins…During 2009-10, the Tars have held opponents to just 53.4 ppg. while averaging 65.4 ppg. They have out-rebounded challengers by 88 and have forced 491 turnovers. The team also has six players with 30 or more assists. Heistan leads the way for the Tars, posting a 10.6 ppg. scoring average. She is second in assists with 63 and blocks with 14. Daiger’s 10.1 ppg. is good enough for second on the team and her 29 blocks and 133 rebounds puts her ahead of the class. Moore not only leads the team in assists, but also in steals with 46.